Guards at a children’s prison run by G4S are alleged to have routinely falsified documents in order to prevent the company being fined for “losing control” of the young people in their care.

The accusations, made in a Panorama programme broadcast on BBC1 on Monday night, increase the pressure on G4S, which has suspended seven staff named in the programme for abusing children.

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Panorama sent an undercover reporter to work as a guard at Medway secure training centre (STC) in Kent. The allegations of abuse, now being investigated by police, include children being slapped in the head and using restraint tactics against STC rules, including pressing on a child’s windpipe causing him to complain that he could not breathe.

There is footage of staff talking openly about falsifying records of violent incidents. Under STC rules, if more than two young people are involved in a fight, it is classified as the guards losing control of the centre.

G4S incur heavy financial penalties if such incidents are recorded. Footage shows a guard saying: “If we have an incident with four kids, it will get split up into two separate incidents, so they – G4S – don’t get fined.”

G4S, the world’s largest security firm, has a controversial history running England’s secure training centres. In 2004, 15 year-old Gareth Myatt died after being restrained by three adult guards at Rainsbrook STC, operated by the company.

In 2014, following a Guardian investigation, 14 children who had been unlawfully restrained in STCs run by G4S and Serco were awarded damages amounting to £100,000. Neither company admitted liability, but paid two thirds of the damages. The remaining third was paid by the Youth Justice Board.

G4S currently runs England’s three STCs – Medway, Oakhill in Milton Keynes and Rainsbrook in Northamptonshire. But following a damning inspection report last year, the contract to run Rainsbrook was taken away from G4S in September, although the company is in place until May this year when MTCNovo will take over. The inspection at Rainsbrook found children had been subjected to degrading treatment and racist comments from staff. Six members of staff were dismissed.

The YJB also announced in September that G4S had won the contract to operate Medway STC for another five years. G4S said it could win only one of the two STCs under the procurement process.

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The shadow home secretary, Andy Burnham, who called for G4S to be stripped of its contract to run youth prisons if the Panorama allegations prove to be true, said: “The allegation of G4S deliberately falsifying incident records is shocking. There needs to be a wholesale review of private sector involvement in the delivery of public services.

“There is a long history of corners being cut and quality standards being ignored. This box-ticking approach will never deliver the public services we need.”

After the programme was aired a senior director said he was shocked. Paul Cook, managing director of G4S children’s services, said: “We are appalled by the behaviour of certain members of staff at Medway secure training centre shown in the programme and I would like to apologise personally to any young people involved in these incidents.

“The wellbeing, safety and care of the young people at Medway is our primary objective and we are shocked that any member of staff would behave in this way. There is no place for the conduct shown in the programme within any of our secure training centres and it will not be tolerated.”

In parliament earlier on Monday Labour was granted an urgent question, and chose to ask the justice secretary, Michael Gove, to make a statement on safety in prisons and secure training centres. The Labour MP Andy Slaughter urged Gove to review all the Ministry of Justice contracts with G4S and to consider placing all STCs in special measures.

Gove said he took the allegations seriously and that Ofsted and the prisons inspectorate had visited Medway STC earlier in the day to ensure the wellbeing of the children there. He said he was meeting with G4S this week to discuss the allegations. The justice secretary admitted to the Commons the security group had previously “let the Ministry of Justice and those in our care down”. He added: “These are children and we have a duty of care to them.”

Cook said: “We take any allegations of unacceptable or inappropriate behaviour extremely seriously and are giving our full support and cooperation to the local authority designated officer for safeguarding children and the police as the investigation moves forward.”

Eric Allison is the Guardian’s prison correspondent and was a consultant on Panorama’s Teenage Prison Abuse Exposed, which aired on Monday 11 January 20.30.